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Topic: A strange Thistle? (Read 4112 times)

This thistle-like plant has surfaced in my chickenyards. No clue how it got here, and have not seen it before, but there are many. A few of the more mature ones I would say stand about 4 feet tall by the same diameter. Enormous. Pretty purple flowers that the bombus love. The honeybees are not interested. Can anyone tell the exact species of Thistle? I must know. Have that most beautiful, wonderful day, love our earth. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Looks like burdock. Brush past those plants after they dry up a bit and see where the idea for Velcro came from. The seed heads are great for tossing in your sister's hair (though I haven't done that since her stint in the military)

And if this citation is credible, Scadsobees was right on the money about the velcro:

Burdock and Velcro

After taking his dog for a walk one day in the early 1940s, George de Mestral, a Swiss inventor, became curious about the seeds of the burdock plant that had attached themselves to his clothes and to the dog's fur. Under a microscope, he looked closely at the hook-and-loop system that the seeds use to hitchhike on passing animals aiding seed dispersal, and he realised that the same approach could be used to join other things together. The result was Velcro.

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On PleasureKahlil Gibran....And to both, bee and flower, the giving and the receiving of pleasure is a need and an ecstasy.People of Orphalese, be in your pleasures like the flowers and the bees.

Isn't that funny, Cindi, I've been watching what I've been calling a magnificent weed right outside my back door - I knew it was a burdock, but it's just so majestic I've left it alone. Be sure to get rid of it before the seeds drop or you'll have lots of it! Yes, the root is edible, but supposedly difficult to dig. I'll snap a picture of it later on and post it.

Holy smoking, smoking smoke!!! OK, OK, now I am going back to the cobwebs of my mind, eeks and it is scaring the living daylights out of me.

I have never had burdock growing on my property, ever. And yes, I have heard of burdock, only in the gardening books. It is an extremely invasive weed.

We have a smaller version of what I call burrs. Now I will have to go and get a picture of those, they are very beautiful and pretty plants, but yes....they have those burrs that will stick on anything, particularly when we had horses, they always had burrs in their forelocks and tales, but not from this burdock that is now growing.

Last summer when I was visiting my daughter up in Kelowna, about 400 km north of where I live, she showed me this horrible plant that she said was so invasive that she could not get rid of it.

It was this Burdock, exactly like the picture that I have posted here in this thread. I had forgotten about this plant until everyone started to speak about burdock.

This massive and now I know for surely, is going to be a terrible invader has come from her house. 400 km away. It must have adhered some seeds to my shoes, socks, who knows what and began it travel to my property and now is here. Eeeks!!!! I really don't need burdock here, there is eons and eons of other flowers that are so much more beneficial to my bees that they are in love with.

My eradication process has begun. Now if Burdock is anything like this other plant that grows on my property, which has thousands of tiny seeds when it goes to seed, and is not even close to this particular burdock in the pictures, I am in for a fight. I know the depth of the taproot of this other, smaller "doc" that has always grown on my property and it is a nasty one. I don't even now thing that "doc" is the name of this weed that has always grown here, I need to find out what it is. I seriously do not want this enormous and majestic burdock on my property and so far, have only seen about 6 plants. The mother plants must be removed, period. It is indeed a most beautiful and majestic plant, as I say, but I don't want it here, I don't need more burrs.

Going back in time again. I can recall a long time ago, when my Sister's Son was about 6 years old. They were outside doing something with their horses (she is my Sister that lives in a neighbouring town). My Sister had picked a bunch of burrs and he asked her what they were. She told him they were burrs and she chucked this little handful of burrs at him and they stuck to the front of his shirt, she told him to watch out that they don't get him. Well, this poor little gaffer!!!! He thought for sure that the aliens from outer space had landed on his shirt, and they were sticking to him. He was horrified, these little burrs did not come off easily and he screamed and screamed and screamed. Oh did she feel bad!!! Poor little guy, I will never forget this tale, but isn't it fun to scare kids with stuff, or make them taste awful things when they are young little guys? :evil: ;) :) :) :) The thing we do for love.

Now, getting back to Burdock. Eeeks!!! What more can I say....but, have that most beautiful and wonderful day, love this life so worthy to live. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Oh oh, Japanese Knotweed. My Sister brought me over a few hunks last fall, it is growing, hope it does not get too obnoxious here, but I do have the room to let it go crazy. There is always roundup Have a most wonderful and beautiful day, Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service

Japanese knotweed is extremely difficult to eradicate, even with Roundup, be sure you want it before you allow it to take hold! There are better members of that family that behave themselves. I don't know if you remember the post last year about the knotweed relative my mother has, Cindi, I posted a picture of it......I'll have to dig it up again.

Ann, yes I recall the conversation about the Japanese Knotweed conversation, of it growing at your Mother's place, persicaria polymorpha is the cultivar that you said she had. I searched your thread for that piece and found it, listed below: I am still going to cultivate this cultivar that I have, not overly worried about it spreading. It is a beautiful, tropical looking plant anyways, and I love that. Have the most wonderful and beautiful day, love life. Cindi

There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service